A New Path
by Sinkaiyen
Summary: Being brought back to the dead Ulquiorra is stripped of his Arrancar powers and sent to the human world where he falls for Orihime. Ichigo soon realizing who he is sets out to kill him for good... Ulquiorra kidnaps Orihime and runs...
1. Chapter 1

A New Path  
Ulquiorra and Orihime

Chapter One

A Second Chance

Aizen stood up at the end of a long table, only a few chairs filled then blackness. Ulquiorra fired a cero at a hollowfied Ichigo only to have it crushed by the monstrous creature. Ulquiorra's gaze fell on the orange-haired girl as he fell, Ichigo's sword stuck in his chest. More blackness came after seeing the waver in the innocent looking girls gaze.

Sitting up slowly Ulquiorra looked around surrounded by darkness no wind to ruffle his tattered clothing, "So it wasn't a dream..." he thought aloud wondering how he could possible be alive still. That last attack by Ichigo should have finished him off but instead of dead he was alive, or was he? Thinking about this Ulquirra started to walk.

After what seemed like hours had passed he stopped seeing a faint light. Not knowing what was at the other end Ulquiorra stood there not daring to move forward. He'd heard about seeing a light upon death, though this couldn't be it. It's not that he was afraid of death, it just felt too real. "I can't be dead..." his voice seemed to be sucked in by the light as it drew closer despite him not moving.

The blinding light fading right before it became too much to bear, showed something besides darkness. Stepping forwards Ulquiorra found himself in the human world, What happened to Los Nochez?, he thought silently looking around. "Hey aren't you suppose to be in school?" someone called.

Hearing the voice he turned to see a medium-aged woman across the street from where he stood, after realizing the woman could see him he blinked "Um... school?" he asked not understanding. How can she see me? he asked himself, I'm not in a shinigami...

"Don't try and pull that with me... there's no way you don't know what a school is" the woman seemed irritated with him.

Still not understanding Ulquiorra shook his head before walking off ignoring the lady who was still talking to him as he went off. His bare feet splashing against a small puddle of water, he looked down to see his reflection. That's not me... he thought in disbelief. The image that reflected back at him was of a nearly white skinned boy with medium length black hair, and dazzling green eyes. Not the cold stare that his originally white face showed, the broken hollow mask nowhere upon his head...


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

School - day one _**The orange haired beauty**_

Three days had passed since the strange incident. Tattered white-coat blowing in the wind Ulquiorra kept walking tiring like never before. He couldn't bring himself to except this, the fact that he was somehow human. "Going to have to find somewhere to stay..." he whispered even though no-one was around.

When finally stopping to rest again Ulquiorra had closed his eyes almost falling into a sleep that he did not want. 'Sleeping will prove that I'm like them...' he though to himself. He had found out the hard way that he no longer had the powers he once had when trying to fly.

_Not twenty minutes after he'd walked away from the woman, after being lectured by the woman Ulquiorra found himself in the middle of the street with a vehicle speeding towards him. He was more than smart enough to know that it was dangerous and also knowing that Ichigo lived somewhere in this world he decided that he wouldn't use his Cero. So his only option left was to fly, so he lept into the air though quickly began to fall. Admittedly he went at least ten feet up before hand. Before reaching the ground, the vehicle almost at a complete stop, he kicked at the car pushing himself out of the way before running._

Awaking after what seemed like hours Ulquiorra looked up, a light shining his eyes. After squinting a little he'd found that the light belonged to a police officer. "Aren't you suppose to be going to school?" the officer asked.

"Sorry..." Ulquiorra yawned knowing that it was useless without his powers, noticing there were two other cops nearby. "I guess I'll get going then..."

"Yeah that would be a good idea... we'll give you a ride..." the cop lowered the flashlight he was holding. "Hey!" a girls voice came, this one sounding younger than the voice of the last girl he'd talked to. Turning his attention to the direction in which he'd heard the voice he was stunned.

Before he could get up or say a thing the cops had already left, the girl helping him up her long orange hair falling down her back. "W-who..." his eyes widened _'_Orihime...' the thought came suddenly.

"Hehe... Orihime Inoue" the girl responded answering almost instantly. "Now let's go..." she said dragging him the few blocks to the school. "Ah great..." she pouted "Looks like we're late..." she looked over to him "Your new huh? I better take you to the office..."

'She seems... different...' he thought as they walked barely hearing a thing she said regretting when she left him at the office doors. "Sorry! Got to get to class or I'll be in real trouble!" she giggled as she ran off blushing slightly.

"U... Uryiu" Ulquiorra told the man behind the desk when being asked his name. If the girl was there then Ichigo and the others were more than likely to be there. "Uryiu Uske" he told the man. With a nod he put the name in the computer and handed him a schedule. "From the looks of it you've never been schooled before... I'm going to go ahead and put you in regular classes though... you look smart..."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_**A Stolen Kiss... **__Rivals once more_

"Yeah... real smart looking..." Ulquiorra commented as he left the office. Looking about the place he noticed that the halls were completely bare, blank. No color but white, lockers lining only one wall. Taking a turn Ulquiorra looked up and read the number on the door "B-7..." he sighed walking into the room. (I Guess I have no choice... not until I figure out how to get my powers back...) he thought upon entering.

"You must be the new kid" the teacher at the top of the room smiled, her long light-brown hair falling over her shoulders, though somehow completely clear of her face. "yeah..." Ulquiorra answered. The teacher seeming to ignore his comment smiled at the rest of the class "Everyone this is Uryiu Uske" she said to the class before telling him to pick an empty seat and to go ahead and get seated.

Doing as told Ulquiorra took the only seat available besides one that was sat back in the far corner of the room. Usually that would be his seat but for the fact that Orihime sat next to the seat in which he took. "Hey... thanks for earlier..." he told her. It seemed safe seeing as how she didn't seem to notice exactly who he was.

Looking into Uqluiorras emerald green eyes Orihime giggled "It was no problem. It was nice to meet you" she said before turning to face the front of the room, the second bell ringing.

After school had ended Ichigo came up from the back of the room not being noticed before. For the first time he was actually early, usually making a late entrance. "Hey Orihime you free after school?" he asked her

"What a coincidence" Ulquiorra laughed "I was just about to ask the same thing..." he said scratching the back of his head with one hand trying to make everything seem natural. Then seeing that Ichigo wasn't going to move away he turned back to Orihime. "so what do you say... wanna hang out?" he asked

"Sure me you and Ichigo can all go to the park or something" he smiled brightly before hugging him. Stuck in an awkward position Ulquiorra just sat there for a moment before finally raising his arms and wrapping them around her hesitantly.

"Come on!" Ichigo broke the hug "Let's get going if we want to make it before dark" he grinned. He wouldn't admit it but he had a crush on Orihime and couldn't bear to stand the new kid getting a hug such as the one she gave him. 'This is going too far mister...' Ichigo thought, 'better kiss her at the park... before he gets an idea' he thought as they started to walk out of the school.

_After school at the park_

Ulquiorra laughed hanging upside down on monkeybars, watching Orihime try it. 'your out of your league Ichigo...' he thought. On the way to the park after noticing that Ichigo had a thing for Orihime he decided that he'd take as much time as he could with her so that Ichigo wouldn't have it. Also if he could he was even on planning to like her.

When almost up she ended up falling though. "Ouchie..." she mumbled rubbing the back of her head.

Jumping down almost immediately Ulquiorra was by her side, though Ichigo had gotten there first and was helping her up. "Look Orihime... I know this isn't the right time but..." Ichigo started knowing he had to do this now "I..." he leaned in.

'Oh no your not..." Ulquiorra thought putting his hand on her shoulder. Surprised she looked at Ulquiorra which caused Ichigo to miss and kiss her cheek. "I like you" Ulquiorra said quickly giving her a deep passionate kiss on the lips. Surprisingly her lips were warm and soft unlike what he imagined.

Trying to struggle at first Orihime soon gave up falling under the spell of Ulquiorra's kiss. She kissed back forgetting Ichigo for a minute her hands wrapping around the small of his back. Feeling his tongue against her lips she opened her mouth to allow entry soon feeling his tongue brush against hers.

"Hey!" Ichigo yelled pulling her back and making her fall. With a scowl Ichigo went off "What was that?" he asked before looking at her. Looking back again "You bastard..."

Not expecting Ichigo to react so badly Ulquiorra was caught by surprise as Ichigo's fist connected with his cheek. "Damn..." he shook his head, "What's wrong with you?" he asked "You were about to do the exact same thing?..." his voice lowered as a smile crept across his lips. Ready for the next attack he side-stepped Ichigo's next hit and spun around, though never making contact with him. "STOP!" Orihime cried with tears in her eyes.

They both stopped immediately, Ichigo going to her. "No..." she looked away from him the tears still in her eyes. "I want Uryiu.." she sniffled. Walking away even more pissed now Ichigo clenched his fist. 'your going to pay...'


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

_**Strange feelings...**__ the truth... revealed._

Ulquiorra watching Ichigo walk off grinned though the grin quickly faded noticing that the girl was still crying. "Hey... Orihime... everything's going to be okay.. he's just... i don't know..." he sighed. 'Why are you trying to help her?' he asked himself silently 'It's not like I care... this is just to get at Ichigo...' he finished the thoughts though he had started to doubt them as soon as they were thought. It had been all about getting Ichigo back at the beginning, not really getting him back though. Ulquiorra just wanted to make him suffer after almost dying by his hands.

"It's your fault... you stupid" she hit him in the chest hurting her hands. He may be skinny, irregularly so but he was strong. "Ow..." she sniffled trying to wipe away her tears. "You shouldn't have kissed me!" she protested though secretly she was glad he did instead of Ichigo. After all Ichigo was her friend and that was as much as she wanted him to be, their friendship was too much for something like this. She wouldn't let it get ruined even if she had feelings for him. 'But what about Uryiu?...' she thought having slight feelings for him already. She couldn't explain it but she felt like she knew him from sometime before. It was like he was an important part of her past.

"I'm sorry... your right" he told her somehow actually meaning it. It wasn't like him to be sorry. 'Is this what it feels like to be human?...' he thought hating it. He didn't want to be human... It's what Ichigo was... and her. "I shouldn't have... I.. I'll go now..." he stood up then taking his arms from around her. "I won't bother you again..." he told her with a soft voice, a hint of sadness in his voice despite him trying to hide all the emotions he was feeling. 'You really are turning human aren't you?...' he asked himself.

"N...no..." Orihime looked up wiping the last of her tears away, her voice whiny. "P-please... stay..." she whispered.

A few minutes later at Ichigo's house

"Who does the think he is..." Ichigo's voice was low as his fist came down on the door to his closet. "That bastard... I... hate him" he growled a deep rage stirring within him. ' Calm down...' he thought to himself not wanting to make his little sisters worry. Not only that but if his father found out something was wrong he knew that one: he wouldn't stop bugging him until he said something, or two: he'd try and cheer Ichigo up by beating the crap out of him, which never really worked out. Ichigo laughed to himself though his laugh wasn't at all kind. "I can't believe she kissed that loser... back" he closed his eyes taking a deep breath. "Gotta think straight.. there has to be something..." he paced around his room. "That's it!" he yelled suddenly stopping. The green eyes... pale almost white skin... medium length hair that went to the bottom of his neck. It had to be... 'But how do I prove it?...' he asked himself mentally. Add green lines running down his eyes and a broken hollow mask and there it was. "Ulquiorra..." he whispered. "So that's why..." Ichigo was even more pissed now though he was in a way calm. At least he knew what he was dealing with and if Ulquiorra didn't try killing him then he must not have powers like this. 'Now all I have to do is prove it...'

Later that night back at the park

"I think we should get you home..." Ulquiorra smiled lightly. 'I hate this... why not just tell her to leave you alone? quit being human...' he thought to himself. "I feel... warmth..." he thought allowed having never felt such a thing before. It was completely unusual for him. He'd never felt anything before, neither warmth nor cold. And now all of a sudden it seemed as if his insides were on fire.

"Hehe... okay" Orihime kissed him on the cheek "That's Ichigo's by the way" The kiss was hers to give him but she had to get him back someway, or at least she didn't want him to know that she liked him back believing that he really did like her.

"I..." Ulquiorra didn't know what to say but scowled when she said something about it being from Ichigo. "hehe" she giggled. Strangely enough though Ulquiorra soon got over his anger at the thought of Ichigo. It was like he didn't exist at the moment. "okay.." he said "Let's get you home... I think you've had enough of this night air."

Halfway back from the park Ulquiorra sighed again his thoughts still as much as ever. 'Maybe... I should try giving being human a chance... it might not be so bad...' his gaze on Orihime, he was confused still about these feelings he was having and even more by his thoughts. Why now? Was this some sort of punishment? 'or a second chance?' he corrected himself.

"Okay... this is where you stop" Orihime giggled giving him a kiss on the other cheek having warmed up to him a lot more since their walk. She didn't really understand her feelings either but she felt she could trust this stranger... 'no not stranger... he's Uryiu...' she smiled.

"I'll see you tomorrow then..." Ulquiorra said having a hard time getting the words out before turning and walking off into the night already ready for another day of school.

Back at Ichigo's house

"Kind of glad now that no one's home tonight..." Ichigo laughed remembering how he worried about his little sisters or pops overhearing him. They couldn't possibly no matter what, for they had decided to go to the movies tonight for once. Ichigo though being typical well... Ichigo declined the invitation and decided to stay home. "Still can't believe I thought that was Ulquiorra... I killed him... he couldn't have possibly came back..." he said allowed though deep within his mind he was trying to find a way to prove that Uryiu was in fact Ulquiorra... There was noway to tell how he knew but he just knew that that was the truth... that the kid who'd kissed his Orihime was none other than Ulquiorra...


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Awakening-A new story

A few days after Uryiu, having thrown away his former title and name. No longer allying himself with the Arrancer as the 4th seat, Ulquiorra - Had been brought to the world of the living for whatever reason, rolled out of bed with a groan as a woman's voice called from the other room. Getting up to see what was going on he blinked, taking a few seconds to recall the events of the past few days, being taken in by a small family of three after spending the night out on the street after waving goodbye to Orihime. "Yeah, I'll be right there" he yawned as he took the stairs down to the front-room before veering to the left and heading towards the kitchen to pick up a few pieces of freshly made toast. "Mmmm I still can't get over how good this tastes" he stated, smiling in delight as he let the bread dissolve in his mouth. Taking another small bite before sitting it down and moving back to the front-room, slipping on a pair of shoes. "Well, anyways, I'm off to school. Thanks again, you've been really kind!"

"Oh, don't think too much about it dear, we couldn't just let you stay out on such a cold night, now could we?" the woman replied, baffling the man as he started towards school, wondering where he was suppose to meet up with Orihime and Ichigo. His mind in a daze as he kept his feet moving, the sky turning from a dazzling blue to a fading orange and soon to black. "Hey, where you bee...?" A voice called, snapping him from his thoughts, Uryiu looking in the direction of another similar looking female.

Was that... That was it, it was Rukia. "Guess I forgot!" He called back, waving towards her as his other hand went behind his head. A small smile creeping up on his face, unaware that Rukia's sentence had been cut off. "Behind you!" she called, shaking her head 'here I go again'. Rukia rushed forward to push the male out of the way, causing him to look behind him and smile at the sight of a hollow. "Hey there, little guy!" he called, the thing standing at twenty feet. Two massive arms on each side of his torso and quite short legs that resembled a kangaroo's, the mask jutting out in the form of a triceratops.

"Are you stupid!" she called, grabbing him and throwing him away from the hollow before releasing her Gigai. "Ha!" She then charged out, her Gigai falling to the ground as she fought the Hollow, swinging in a downward arc as she rushed it, hoping to dismantle it in one blow. The Hollow though, being much stronger than the average level hollow grabbed at her Zanpakuto and flung her right into Uryiu, knocking her unconscious.

"Wh..." Uryiu looked around, now standing for some reason even though he didn't dodge, not having enough room. For whatever reason, Rukia's spiritual pressure spiked the moment she came into contact with Uryiu and caused him to leave his body and inhabit the form of a Substitute Soul Reaper like Ichigo. His Zanpakuto was massive, the blade slightly curved as a small semi-spherical hole shown through the back of the blade (Like the half circle in the front of Zabuza's sword from Naruto). "What's going on...?" The shock of what just happened and the reality that Uryiu was standing there as a Soul Reaper being too much for him to handle... Allowing the hollow the perfect oppurtuny to strike, causing him to go flying before lunging towards Rukia.

Rukia's face as she saw the hollow charge was one of fear, her Zanpakuto out of reach and her body barely responding to her whims due to the mass amount of spiritual pressure discharged. "I... I'm a Soul Reaper...?" Uryiu stated before looking up at the charging Hollow. "Alright, then I guess I have no choice!" Rukia being the dear friend that she was to Orihime, he couldn't let her be harmed. Not if he was going to ruin Ichigo's life and steal her from him.

"Now die!"


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

_**Uryiu's plot **__- Stolen hearts_

The next few moments were a blur as time around Uryiu started to slow, coming to a halt as he raced forward, his sword cutting easily through the hollow's arm as he tried attacking Rukia. Another, upward slash, followed his initial attack quickly after, years of time spent fighting and honing his skills reaching through and guiding his every motion. A brilliant blue flame ingulfing the creature, causing it to slowly turn to ash until only the mask remained, falling to the ground and shattering instantly as time picked back up. Uryiu falling unconscious the moment his arms stopped, the momentum of his last attack and the adrenaline pumping through his system faltering. His Spiritual Pressure much weaker than it had been previously.

"What happened? What's he doing here, I thought I warned you not to hang around him?! You idiot!" Ichigo yelled at Rukia, kicking hte unconscious boy. "How many times do I have to tell you before you belive me, it's Ulquiorra, he's fooling you!" Rukia glaring the entire time, waiting until he was done before hitting him in the back of hte head.

"He can't be, he transformed into a Substitue Soul Reaper!" Rukia scowled, calling him an idiot before continuing "He may look similar to this Ulquiorra but he's not the same, plus... He saved my life, no Arrancar would ever do something like that" She turned and jumped out of his window, leaving Ichigo with Uryiu.

"Wai!.." Ichigo sighed, stopping as he realized it was no use before turning back to the boy that was asleep on his bed. "I could have sworn you were..." He shook his head "I got a bad feeling... But I guess I'm just going to have to trust you, at least for now."

_Ulquiorra stood outside of his body as he listened to what Ichigo had to say, his presence unknown by the orange-haired male, the essence of his darker half beginning to fade. "It looks like... you won't be needing me here, Uryiu... My second chance, it seems I'm not meant to exist here... But let me install into you this. That man, the one who calls himself Ichigo Kurosaki, it's not him... He's calling you this Ulquiorra fellow so that he can steal Orihime from this world and use her for his own selfish needs. He is in fact Ichigo's inner hollow. You must stop him at any cost... And as an early payment, I will take with me all memory of what happened before this life..."_

Uryiu would slowly wake as the essence of his darkness began to fade, waiting for a time where it could rise again. His eyes widening as he stared directly at a white ichigo with frightening yellow eyes, scrambling back on his bed as the Ichigo started to talk. "_**What's the matter huh, you look like your seeing a ghost?!"**_ the voice frightening Uryiu and causing him to fall off Ichigo's bed. Shaking his head afterwards before looking up, seeing the real Ichigo once more. "You must have taken quite a toll back there, huh?" he asked before reaching his hand out to Uryiu. The man hesitant to take it before pulling himself to his feet. "I... I have to get going" he stated as he rushed out, ignoring Ichigo's words as he was told to wait. _'and tell Orihime'_ the thought blossomed in his mind, wondering what he was going to do, only hoping she'd believe him.


End file.
